Many children (and SLPs) are suckers for a good seasonal sensory bin. This weekend we made a Valentine’s Day themed bin using materials we got from Dollar Tree. This post will discuss some bin basics. Our next post will outline some target vocabulary and language skills to target during the actual sensory play.

Step 2: Add different colors and textures of decorative filling and mix them well.

Step 3: Add hearts of different colors and sizes. We used glittery ones to add texture.

Step 4: Add foam letters from an alphabet puzzle.

Step 5: Mix all the bin components well!

While the grass and hearts are the base of the bin, perhaps you are not working on letters with your kiddo at this time. Depending on your particular language or literacy goals, here are some other items you could replace the letters with:

Small figures or toys

Pictures of target vocabulary

Sight words

Lowercase and uppercase letters (for matching purposes)

Puzzle pieces

A variety of items with various textures

Different tools to manipulate the components of the bin (i.e. scoops, spoons, tweezers)

Some kiddos will enjoy playing with a sensory bin by just exploring all the components. They will feel all the items and move the pieces around. For many children, this only occupies them for a brief period of time. To get more use out of the bin you must add some purposeful play. How did we do this? We took the foam alphabet pieces out of the puzzle and hid the letters in the sensory bin. The goal of play was to search the bin, find all the letters, and complete the puzzle. This allowed for an opportunity to work on labeling and identifying letters throughout various steps in this process.

If you are not recreating this bin with letters, you can still add some purpose to the play. Looking at the suggested list of items above, you can conduct a search within the sensory bin for:

Matching uppercase and lowercase letters

Specific pictures in different categories (i.e. "Find all the places." "Find all the food items.")

Pieces of a puzzle to complete

Items that portray various describing words (i.e. "Find someone wearing a pink dress." "Find something that is fuzzy." "Find something that is large and bumpy.")